Eleven Contract E. Coli From Boise Restaurant

Eleven people have been diagnosed with potentially deadly E. coli infections after eating at a Chili’s Restaurant in Boise.

The victims, mostly young adults, all ate Caesar salad or chicken at the Southwestern-style restaurant on Broadway Avenue between Sept. 14 and Sept. 22. Tests still are being conducted to determine the exact source of the contamination.

“We’re still under investigation on the foods,” said Kathy Holley, director of the Central District Health Department in Boise.

Public health officials decided against closing the restaurant or notifying the public of the outbreak of E. coli 0157:H7 - the same strain that sickened hundreds of Jack in the Box restaurant customers and killed three children in four states in 1993.

“We inform the public when we think there is a reason the public needs to know,” said Dr. Jesse Greenblatt, state epidemiologist. “When there is no evidence there is still a problem, why ruin their business?”

Public health officials believe the danger has passed because they have received no reports of E. coli sickness in people who ate at the restaurant after Sept. 22.

But Greenblatt admits officials cannot be absolutely sure until Oct. 11, after two full incubation periods for the illness have passed. The incubation period is the time it takes to become sick after exposure to a disease-causing microbe. For E. coli, the period is two to 10 days.

“If we see another case of illness, all bets are off,” Greenblatt said. Then health officials would consider issuing a public notice.

“At this point, there are a lot of unanswered questions,” said Steve Cooper, chief operating officer for the two Chili’s restaurants in Boise. “Our priority is our guests and our employees, and we have been communicating daily with the Health Department.”

The restaurant on Broadway has a clean record with the Central District Health Department. In its most recent inspection, Chili’s scored 96 points out of a possible 100.